100th Post!!! Hot Milk Sponge Cake

This entry marks a special occasion - 100th blog post which is an important milestone and an opportunity to look back and see how things have changed since I started Poorni's Easy Cookbook. Thank you all for joining me on this cooking journey and I hope you all continue to enjoy my blog.

It has been 100 posts of journey into making/modifying calorie-rich dishes into low-calorie and healthy recipes. Whats more, I made many blogger friends along the way through this blog and learnt a lot from them. I am grateful to have had an opportunity to connect with so many of you through this blog.

Moving on to the dish for this day, I made this Hot Milk Sponge cake to celebrate my 100th post. I had saved this recipe from an old half torn cookbook without cover in the city library. What is better than a hot pound of basic Sponge cake that melts in your mouth? Furthermore, this recipe does not have butter in it. You may be wondering what kind of Sponge cake can be made without butter? Well, I made it without butter and after tasting it, I had no words to describe how spongy and crumbly the cake was so I let out the excitement by punching into the air.

This is the easiest, tasty and most spongy Sponge cake you can imagine. This recipe (by the look of that cookbook!!) seems to be one of the oldest recipes that were followed probably in 50's for Sponge cake.
The cake can be refrigerated for more than 2 weeks. That is the reason I made it as a loaf. You can make it in a cake pan if you like. It tastes best with a hot cup of coffee or tea. Tastes incredible if microwaved for 30 seconds before serving.

Nutritional Information  (Approx) (per serving)
Energy	145		Calories
Fat	3		%
Carbohydrates	9		%
Dietary Fiber	1		%
Sodium	1		%
Vitamin A	2		%
Vitamin C	1		%
Calcium	1		%
Iron	2		%
Protein	2.7		Grams
Sugar	16.7		Grams

Ingredients
Eggs	2
Sugar	1 cup
Wheat flour	1 cup
Salt	1/2 teaspoon
Baking powder	1 teaspoon
Olive oil	1 tablespoon
Milk	1/2 cup

• Sieve and combine the dry ingredients. 
• Beat eggs until light. Add sugar slowly and beat for 5 more minutes so that the ingredients are well-blended.
• Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and mix.

• Heat milk and add olive oil. Heat till the milk is hotter but does not start to boil..
• Add milk-oil mixture to the batter and fold-in quickly. Make sure there are no lumps.

• Pour the batter into greased cake pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until done at 350 deg. F.
• Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before running the knife in the sides of the pan and flipping it on a wire rack to cool the cake completely.

Dates and Semolina Halwa

Enjoy warm and healthy goodness of this sugar-less Dates halwa this Diwali and make your day healthier. This is a super simple and very easy recipe that can be made within minutes and can be served as a sweet snack or as a perfect quick dessert. Happy Diwali in advance!

Another sweet and delicious dessert yet so guilt free for this healthy Diwali , I would like to tempt you with my recipe for Dates and Semolina halwa. This is made of Oil, Dates and Semolina and can be made within 15 minutes. You can add nuts and raisins and modify to your choice. You can add half ghee and half oil for that special aroma. This dish is very humble and I have kept the recipe simple and basic. This dessert is great to curb sweet cravings for diabetics and a perfect chewy snack for expecting mothers. I keep a box of these in my refrigerator all the time for my mid day snack. It is filling and satisfies my sweet tooth without making any harm to my "Sugar-free"diet.

My mum makes this Halwa but she adds ragi flour instead of Semolina which is good for diabetics. This year for Diwali , I decided to make all the snacks guilt-free. This is one of those recipes which makes an amazing dessert without compromising on the richness and warmth of the festival celebration.

Once again, Hope this festival of lights bring you every joy and happiness. May the lamps of joy illuminate your life and fill your days with the bright sparkles of peace, mirth and goodwill. May the warmth and splendor, that are a part of this auspicious occasion, fill your life with happiness and bright cheer, and bring to you joy and prosperity, for the whole year. Have a joyous and safe Diwali. (*)

Ingredients
Dates Deseeded	250 grams
Fine Semolina (Chiroti Rava)	250 grams
Oil/Ghee	2 tablespoons
Vanilla essence/cardamom powder	1/2 teaspoon
Grated Almonds (optional)	1 teaspoon

• Soak deseeded dates in hot water for 10 minutes. Let the water be hot not warm. 
• Blend the soaked dates to a fine puree using the same water it was soaked in.
• You can skip to this step when the dates are soaking. In a pan, heat oil and add semolina. Fry under low flame till it turns slightly brown.

• Transfer semolina to a plate so that it can cool for a while.
• Heat the same pan again, add dates puree and bring it to boil under low flame. Add semolina, mix well. Let the mixture cook for 5-7 minutes under low heat. 
• Keep stirring the mixture every minute till it stops sticking to the bottom of pan and forms a big lump. Add Vanilla essence or cardamom powder and give it another mix. Remove from flame.

• Let the mixture cool for a while before you take it on a clean surface to knead it. Once the mixture is warm enough to touch, knead it for 2 minutes.
• Spread the mixture and cut it into your desired shapes. Sprinkle grated almond for a special look. 
• You can serve it hot or cold but it tastes best when it is refrigerated. 

Linking to: Full Scoops: First Blog Anniversary Giveaway!